CL’s Stylist on Crafting Her Hello Bitches Tour Wardrobe

When you’re one of music’s best dressed performers, the fashion stakes are higher, and for K-pop queen CL, it isn’t enough to wear looks fresh from the runway. For the Hello Bitches tour, her first in North America, the superstar aimed to push things one step further with an onstage wardrobe that combined pieces from up-and-coming designers with custom items from her favorite houses.

Kicking off the nine-city tour with a sold-out show in New York, CL and stylist Matt Mazur debuted a fresh take on the streetwise look that has become her signature. For Mazur, who first noticed the star back when he was in college, working with her isn’t just another job, it is the experience of a lifetime. The two met almost two years ago through a mutual friend—Jeremy Scott, now creative director of Moschino—and soon began texting and exchanging ideas. Finding that their unique styles meshed, the pair quickly moved from being pals to collaborating on a world tour—a first for Mazur.

“I’m not a stylist by trade; I just started styling her—and that’s how I became a stylist,” said Mazur on the phone between fittings. “It’s been exciting. She’s someone I’ve known since I was 18 and so I’ve gotten to see her go from being a K-pop star to being personally invited by Carine Roitfeld to dinner during fashion month. I’m so happy for her.”

Here, he shares what goes into creating CL’s most fashion-forward looks.

The first look they collaborated on came together in less than a day.“It was for Hedi Slimane’s Saint Laurent show in Los Angeles. She was in L.A.; I was I New York, and we FaceTimed once and I was like, Whoa, this is really happening! I requested jewelry from New York, and we pulled it all off in six hours. To this day it’s one of my favorite looks. She was wearing a blazer with the jewelry and had this platinum punky hair. I said we should just do one cross earring, and she liked the idea immediately, as we’re both very inspired by Madonna’s Truth or Dare period. CL loves real performers, the ones who dance, sing, and are characters onstage and off.”

Expect to see a more feminine take on CL’s onstage fashions.“She likes to be more boyish; she’s very much a tomboy. I’m on the other end of the spectrum, so there is a good medium where we meet. We wanted to accentuate her body without making it vulgar, so we love cinching things now. Denim is something that in the past she wouldn’t wear onstage because it’s so casual, but now there are new ways to do denim—embellishment and patchwork. You can put a pair of jeans on with diamonds and it looks different. Exploring that method was something we were both interested in; we wanted each outfit to have a subtle relevance.

There is one outfit I love from Fortie; she’s this girl from England who did the peach corset Rihanna wore onstage at the OVO Festival with the denim chap Manolos. For CL it’s something her fans have never seen her in before, so I was like, we have to do this. They’re more used to a bomber and sweats, looking street, so to show her ladylike and delicate bridges the gap.”

Supporting young talent is essential.“I was gravitating toward young designers who aren’t necessarily that established but are cool, the kinds of brands that are carried at Opening Ceremony, like Matthew Adams Dolan. We wanted to explore things you haven’t seen and aren’t that expected. We just did a fitting with Matt Dolan, and he designed this corseted oversize dress with these thigh-high cowboy boots. I love it and I think it is going to photograph so well. We’re mixing that with Givenchy couture because they’re doing a look for the tour, too. [The outfits are] very high and low, which suits both our personalities.

Supporting young designers is important. I think that’s one of the reasons why Rihanna is as big as she is [in fashion]; she wears so much young talent. Some of the other girls, they just know Gucci, Fendi, Louis Vuitton, so when Rihanna shows up wearing something people never heard of, it sets her apart—it’s one of the reasons everyone wants to be her. I love when people say I’m going to wear something no one has ever seen—that’s what Lil’ Kim did back in the day. Everything has been done, so you’ve got to keep finding something new and fresh.”

When CL sees a look she loves online, it becomes a part of the show.“Misbhv also did a custom look that happened because CL texted me and said we should work with them. She’s really on it, always looking at shows and keeping track of what’s going on. It’s not something I would have initially thought of, but it came together really well and she loved it. In the end, it became the tour’s opening look.”

The one thing you’ll never see CL wear might surprise you.“I want to put her in an all-pink outfit, but she hates pink! I’m always saying we should do pink, but she’s not having it. I’ve been trying to do pink subtly and work it in. There’s actually an awards show coming up where I think it might work, so wish me luck.”